Ramp-rail construction



c. D. YOUNG 1,785,169

RAMP RAIL CONSTRUCTION File? Jan. 18, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l www..

A TTORNEY,

Dec. 16, 1930.

Dec. 16, 1930. c. D. YOUNG RAMP RAIL CONSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 18. 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JNVENTOR.

A TTORNEY Patented Dec. 16, 1930 CHARLES I). YOUNG, or WAYNE, rENNsYLvAnIA BAMPTBAILLCONSTBUGTIQN Appueatio med January 13,` 192e. Seria1"No.333,332.

The present invention relates to the handling of freight containers and more particularly to a ramp construction for that purpose.

l- Some of the objects of the present invention are to provide an improved ramp rail construction for transferring freight containers to and from a freight car; to providearamp construction wherein provision is lmade for l the variation in the height of the floor of different freight cars; to provide Ineanswhereby freight containers can be loaded and unloaded at the level of a freightcar floor or at the level of a container support upon the l floor of such a car; to provide a vertically adjustable ramp track forV receiving and delivering freight containers; to provide a ramp construction which can be quickly and easily brought to a predetermined level; and to prorvide other improvements as will hereinafter appear. Y v In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 represents a side elevation of a ramp construction, embodying one form of the present invention, located in operative relation for receiving and delivering containers from and to a freight car; Fig. 2represents an end elevationof the same; Fig. 3 represents a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 represents an end elevation of the invention as applied to the loading of containers crosswise of a vehicle; and Fig. 5 represents a side elevation of the same showing a container loaded upon a truck.

Referring to the drawings, one form of the present `invention consists of two or more vertically disposed frames 1() mounted upon a suitable foundation, such for example as angle irons 11 embedded in concrete of a driveway, and spaced apart to receive freight carrying vehicles such asrmotor trucks 12 between them for handling containers 13. The top of'each frame 10 supports abed plate 14 by means of side angle irons 15 and the height of the -respective frames 10 is such that the bed plates. 14: all lie in the same horizontal plane.

In order to receive a container 13 from a truck 12 or from a freight car, such as a fiat 50 Car 16, and also to render the transfer of the container from one `location to another van easy operation accompanied by a minimum of friction, eachlbed plate 14 carries a ramp in the form of a yoke 17 which ashere shown is of double channel construction for journalling the spindles 18 4of two series of track rollers 20, oneseries extending lengthwise of one,v channel and the vother series extending similarly inthe other channel, while the re.- spective rollers `v2O of both series lie transverse -ly of the channels with the supporting faces of the rollers above the flanges `21 of the yoke 17. `The receiving endfA of the yoke 17 is curved downwardly so that it terminates below the 4plane of the bottom of a` container 13 when the latter is supported upon a truck 12 while the major body Vportion of the yokel'? tially horizontal through its length. Thus space between two of the frames 10, the conupon which lthe container isto rest is substani tainer will' meet ythe inclined ends of the yoke 17 and be automatically raised from the truck 4as Vthe latter :moves into the ramp space and thefcontainer y will be pushed into'position .upony the horizontal-portion of the yokes where it Visentirely removed from the truck.

The reverse actioncan take place by bringing lugson the truck into engagement with the container topull the latterl forwardlyas'the :truck moves out of the ramp space so that the container rides down the yoke inclines and is deposited upon the truck body.

' Forthe purposeof changlng'the height of thetracks formed by the rollers 2O so that the discharge ends aswell as'the body portion will be at the same level as the floor of'a freight c ar, or at the level of loading roller tracks 22 when such areused upon thecar, the yoke 17 is supported by a plurality `of plates.23 attached at spaced intervals'to the bottom thereof, each plate 23'having a pair ofrears 24 which straddle a tongue 25 projecting from the head 26 ofa feed screw 27. Apin28 interconnect-s the ears 24 and tongue 25 to form a pivot whereby one part can rock with respect to another solthatone endof the` track canY be raised or lowered with respect to the other end without strain upon the parts.

This vrocking movement` is facilitated by forming the opposed faces of the associated parts as arcs of circles having the saine radius. Each ofthe feed screws 27 is threaded inte e leeder het 3() end passes through e hearing plete 3l en the top of the hed plate It will now be apparent thatan efficientV ramp construction has been devised for `load-l ing and unloading containers both with respect to a motor truck or to a freight car, in the one instance an automatic transfer ofthe container from a truck to the ramp or from the ramp to a truck, and in the other instance by manual transfer from the ramp to a freight car and vice versa. Since variation in the height of the floor of a fiat freight car and a truck are common, the present invention makes it possible to carry out container transfer operations regardless of variation in their iioor heights because the ramp roller tracks can be quickly adjusted to any new level required by either having a iioor height different from` the last vehicle. This adjustment is made by rotating the spider wheels 33 so that the leader nuts 30 are fed in the required direction to bring the ramp tracks to the new leveldetermined by the height of the floor of the car to be loaded .or unloaded.

While the present construction illustrates each ramp frame l as supporting two roller tracks side by side so that more than one container can be loaded or unloaded simultaneously this is not to be taken as a limitation of the invention as obviouslyeach frame could support but a single roller track and where the loading area will permit but a single air of the frames l() this construction will e preferred.

In Figs. 4 and 5 an arrangement of the invention isshown to permit containers having' doors to be loaded upon a truck with the doors at the sides of the truck and readily ,accessible for loading and unloading the containers while the containers are resting upon the truck. In this application of the invention the ramp frames are located parallel to .the railroad track and in relatively close yproximity thereto for the convenient transfer of the containers 4from a freight car to the truck or vice versa. The heads 26, in this instance, are set so that the tongues are at right angles to the planeof the frame upon .which each is mounted and hence the yoke .supporting plates 23 are located to support the ramp rails bridging the space between the frames l0. y, Thus instead of each frame supporting one, ramp rail it supports the ends of two. ramp` rails with the result a container can be loaded and unloaded from the side of the frames instead of from the ends as heretofore allow .the roller ramp rails to be disconnected and .removed from the frame 10 .so

,thatthey do not obstruct the free passage of a truck.

` When a container is to be trans ferred from a freight 'car or a. loading platform to v.a `.truck positioned between the Vframes Vl0,`the ramp rails are fastened in plaeeby seating them on the heads 26 at right angles to the frames l0 across the floor of the truck and fastening them in place by the pins 28. A pair of skids 34., having a height'greater than the height of the ramp rails above the truck iioor when the ramp rails are in lowest position, are now placed upon the truck floor in proper position to receive the container to be transferred. The .receiving position of the ramp rails is such that the bottom of the container is held above the skids by reason of the ramp rail feed screws being in their elevated position, and when the container is over the skids 34 the hand wheels 33 are rotated to lower the container until its rests upon the skids. The

ramp rails now being free of the load are 1" disconnected from their supports by the removal of the pins 28 and can be pulled out to allow the truck to drive out with its container. Thus a truck can be loaded with one or more containers all of which have v' their respective doors at the side of the truck thereby allowing free access to the contents of the containers without removing them from the truck.

Having thus described my invention, I

a ramp rail supported by said feed screws,

leader nuts respectively on said feed screws and thrusting against said fra-ine, and means 'for manually turning said nuts to raise or lower said rail with respect to said frame.

2. In a container transfer system, the combination of two or more frames spaced apart to form vehicle receiving stalls, yokes respectively mounted on said frames and forming track channels, rollers journalled transversely of said channels to foim tracks eX- Y tending lengthwise of said yokes, feed screws secured to said yokes, leader nuts on said screws supported by said frame, and manually operated means for turning said nuts to causesaid yokes to raise or lower said tracks.

3. In a container transfer system, the combination of two or more frames spaced apart to form vehicle receiving stalls, leader nuts supportedA by the respective frames, feed screws threaded 1n said nuts, a head on each u feed screw, a yoke pvotally mounted on the screw head of each frame, roller tracks on the respective yokes, and meansv to rotate said leader nuts to cause said yokes to raise or lower said tracks. Y

Signed at Philadelphia, county of Phila` delpha, State of Pennsylvania, this 21st dayv of Dec.,l928. I

CHARLES D. YOUNG. 

